ASTRA 3B will beam television programming directly to homes and businesses across Europe from Spain to the Black Sea for the next 15 years. Customers in the Middle East and Europe will benefit from two-way broadband Internet communications provided by the satellite under the ASTRA2Connect service. The satellite will replace two aging satellites, ASTRA 1E and ASTRA 1G, at the coveted position in the geosynchronous arc. The two older satellites, both launched in the 1990s, will be released for other missions, according to SES ASTRA. Another satellite, ASTRA 3A, will remain colocated with ASTRA 3B to continue providing communications coverage. The craft launched Friday carries 60 Ku-band and four Ka-band transponders. SES ASTRA satellites currently located at 23.5 degrees east longitude broadcast more than 400 television and radio channels to nearly 2.9 million homes in Europe, according to Astrium.